Podcast platform provider Acast bought RadioPublic, a US-based peer spun off by media company Public Radio Exchange (PRX), for an undisclosed amount on Friday, facilitating an exit for multiple corporate backers.
Spun off in 2016, RadioPublic has developed an online platform for downloading and streaming podcasts that is accessible via the web or mobile. It also offers tools and resources for podcasters and allows users to earn money through a pay-per-stream model.
Sweden-headquartered Acast will use the acquisition to increase its presence in the United States as well as to develop its technology and talent.
Automattic, the parent company of blogging platform WordPress, invested an undisclosed amount in RadioPublic in August 2018, after Bose Ventures, a corporate venturing subsidiary of audio equipment producer Bose, had provided an undisclosed sum six months earlier.
Media group WGBH led a $1.2m round for RadioPublic in 2017 that included PRX and media companies Graham Holdings, The New York Times, American Public Media and McClatchy.
Companyon Capital, Project 11 Ventures, Homebrew, UP2398, Matter Ventures, Knight Foundation and individual investors Andrew Mason and George Overholser also took part in the round.
In 2016, RadioPublic raised $1.5m from investors including The New York Times, American Public Media, Graham Holdings, McClatchy, Project 11, Knight Foundation, UP2398, Matter Ventures and Homebrew. TechNexus Venture Collaborative was an early investor in Radiopublic but has since exited.